Michael bought a new belt at the store when they were having a $55\%$ off sale. If the regular price of the belt was $$71$, how much did Michael pay with the discount?
Answer: First, find the amount of the discount by multiplying the original price of the of the item by the discount. $$71$ $\times$ $55\%$ $=$ Percent means "out of one hundred," so $55\%$ is equivalent to $\frac{55}{100}$ which is also equal to $55 \div 100$ $55 \div 100 = 0.55$ Multiply the discount you just converted into a decimal by the original price to find the amount of money saved. $0.55$ $\times$ $$71$ $ = $ $$39.05$ Subtract the discount you just found from the original price to get the final price Michael paid. $$71$ $-$ $$39.05$ $ = $ $$31.95$ Michael paid $$31.95$ for the belt.